# Janet MacLachlan

Janet Angel MacLachlan (August 27, 1933 – October 11, 2010) was an American actress who had roles in such television series as The Rockford Files, The invaders Alias, All in the Family and The Golden Girls. She is best remembered for her key supporting part in the film Sounder (1972) where she portrayed Camille Johnson, a young teacher. MacLachlan worked with numerous well-known actors and actresses and celebrities such as Bill Cosby, Jim Brown, James Earl Jones, Maya Angelou and Morgan Freeman.

## Life and career

MacLachlan was born in Harlem, New York City; her mother, Iris South MacLachlan, and father, James MacLachlan, were both Jamaican-born members of the Church of the Illumination. Attending P.S. 170 and Julia Ward Junior High School, MacLachlan graduated from Julia Richman High School in 1950. She received a bachelor's degree in psychology from Hunter College in 1955. She then worked as an executive secretary in New York City before turning to acting. She later performed at the Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis.
A one-time contract player for Universal Studios, MacLachlan made her debut in two episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour in 1965. She appeared in episodes of The Fugitive, The Invaders episode "The Vise" as Mrs Baxter (1968), The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., Star Trek, Ironside, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Wonder Woman and The Mod Squad. She also appeared in the films Uptight (1968), Change of Mind (1969), ...tick...tick...tick... (1970), Darker Than Amber (1970), Halls of Anger (1970), Sounder (1972), The Man (1972), Tightrope (1984), Murphy's Law (1986), The Boy Who Could Fly (1986) and The Thirteenth Floor (1999).
MacLachlan also won a Los Angeles-area Emmy for her performance in KCET's Voices of Our People: In Celebration of Black Poetry in 1981. She would later serve as grant committee chairman for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

## Death

Suffering from cardiovascular disease in her later years, MacLachlan died from complications from the condition on October 11, 2010, at the age of 77 at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Los Angeles. MacLachlan resided in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles.

## Filmography

1977|| Wonder Woman || Sakri || Episode: "Judgment from Outer Space: Part 1"; Season 1, Episode 9
| 1967 | Star Trek | Lieutenant Charlene Masters | Episode: "The Alternative Factor"; Season 1, Episode 27 |
| 1968 | Uptight | Jeannie | |
| 1969 | Change of Mind | Elizabeth Dickson | |
| 1969 | The Mod Squad | Ann Gibbon | Episode: "To Linc, With Love"; Season 2 Episode 5 |
| 1970 | ...tick...tick...tick... | Mary Price | |
| 1970 | Halls of Anger | Lorraine Nash | |
| 1970 | Darker Than Amber | Noreen | |
| 1972 | The Man | Wanda | |
| 1972 | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Sherry (Kris) Wilson | Episode: "His Two Right Arms"; Season 2, Episode 24 |
| 1972 | Sounder | Camille Johnson | |
| 1973 | Maurie | Dorothy | |
| 1975 | The Rockford Files | Adrienne Clarke | Episode: "The Deep Blue Sleep"; Season 2, Episode 5 |
| 1975 | S.W.A.T. | Cleo Kay | Episode : "Jungle War"; Season 1, Episode 6 |
| 1976 | Ellery Queen | Corrine Ogden | Episode: "The Adventure of the Sunday Punch"; Season 1, Episode 13 |
| 1976 | Barney Miller | Miss Jackson | Episode: "Werewolf' |
| 1978 | Good Times | Sandra Forbes | Episode: "Florida Gets a Job"; Season 6, Episode 5 |
| 1978 | Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Mary Logan | |
| 1979 | All in the Family | Polly Lewis | Episode: "The Return of Stephanie's Father; Season 9, Episode 23 |
| 1982 | Cagney & Lacey | Lynne Sutter | Episode: "Mr. Lonelyhearts"; Season 2, Episode 7 |
| 1984 | Tightrope | Dr. Yarlofsky | |
| 1986 | Murphy's Law | Dr. Lovell | |
| 1986 | The Boy Who Could Fly | Mrs. D'Gregario | |
| 1987 | Big Shots | Welfare Worker | |
| 1987 | The Golden Girls | Sandra | Episode: "Old Friends"; Season 3, Episode 1 |
| 1988 | For Keeps | Miss Giles | |
| 1993 | Heart and Souls | Agnes Miller | |
| 1994 | There Goes My Baby | Lottie | |
| 1994 | Criminal Passion | Tracy's Lawyer | |
| 1994 | In The Heat Of The Night | Nedda Losey | Episode: Who Was Geli Bendl? |
| 1996 | The Big Squeeze | Bank Manager | |
| 1996 | Pinocchio's Revenge | Judge Allen | |
| 1999 | The Thirteenth Floor | Ellen | |